Millermatic 140

[MD Welding]

I have a good size job that's made of thin wall tubing, .049 to .062 thk and was thinking about getting a millermatic 140 for the job. My other option is to try running .023 wire through my suitcase feeder and a 200 amp gun. That seems like it could be a headache.

My question is how are these machines? I got a price of $650 from my lws and found them on line. IOC had them for $591 & cyberweld had them for $630. My only concern with online buying is the dreaded ups ride doing some damage after waiting a few days.
Thanks

[tacmig]

Any way you go is good.

Any way you go is good with the exception that if something major goes wrong you may be better off local. This is of course remote. As far as the delivery truck is concerned Miller welders are not ginger bread houses and take the jiggle and their warranty backs it up. However, with that aside you may want to look at the new MM180, awesome machine and I think you get a lot more for the buck$$!!

TacMig

[DDA52]

I would rather use a suitcase with a decent engine drive than a 115v machine anyday. Might be why I have three suitcases. Why not just get a smaller gun for the suitcase and go that way?

But, if you must get another machine, I would get a Hobart 140 over the Miller. Tapped units can be easier to dial in...plus they are cheaper than the Millers if money is an issue. Just a thought.

[Danny]

If you go with an all-in-one compact unit, and have a need to lay down quite a bit of weld metal, a 180 amp unit might just be a better choice, due to its superior duty cycle. The MM 180, HH 187, and PM 180C are all very good units.

[Danny]

I would rather use a suitcase with a decent engine drive than a 115v machine anyday. Might be why I have three suitcases. Why not just get a smaller gun for the suitcase and go that way?

But, if you must get another machine, I would get a Hobart 140 over the Miller. Tapped units can be easier to dial in...plus they are cheaper than the Millers if money is an issue. Just a thought.

Don, as you are aware, I am a big fan of the arc characteristics that Hobart has recently come up with in the HH 187, and more than likely the HH 210 too, with their new choke design. However, the HH 140 doesn't contain this same choke design, so its short arc characteristics are no where near as good as you are use to seeing from your HH 210. The HH 140 has a very soft low end arc (C-25 and .023), which makes it a very nice auto sheet metal unit. Beyond this though, the arc characteristics are very mediocre. At this point in time, I'd have to go with either a MM 140 or PM 140C, over a HH 140. If Hobart updates the choke on the HH140, to where the arc charateristic come close to matching the HH 187, then i'd definitely go with a HH 140. Remember, as long as its a good performer, i prefer the ease of operation factor that a tapped unit provides over a variable voltage unit.